Narrated Imaam Al-Awzaa’ee from Abdullaah ibn Muhammad who said: “One day I set out to the shore on patrol; and those days we were stationed at Al ‘Arish [A town in N. Egypt], thus when I came to the end of the shore, I saw a small tent [at a distance – in the desert] so I set out for it.

Inside it there was a man who had lost his hands, and had lost his legs, and his sight and hearing had become heavy due to the affliction he had – thus there was not anything [more realistically] beneficial to him than his tongue.

And he was saying: ‘O, Allaah enable [and facilitate] for me that I praise and thank You, the praise which equates thanking You for the blessings which You have bestowed on me and gave me excellence to many more of whom You created.”

So I [was amazed and] said to myself: ‘By Allaah, I have to approach this man and ask him, from among the favors and blessings; what does he really have!? [While he is in this state!] Why is he saying these words? Does he have understanding, or knowledge of what he is saying!? Or is it just desires!?

So I approached the men and gave him the salaams [greetings of peace] and I said to him: ‘I heard you and you were saying: ‘O, Allaah enable [and facilitate] for me that I praise and thank You, the praise which equates thanking You for the blessings which You have bestowed on me and gave me excellence to many more of whom You created.’ So what favors and blessings do you [really] have [while you are in this state!!] and what excellences has He favored you with such that you praise Him because of them?’

So he replied: ‘Even on top of all what you see [of my deficiencies]; If Allaah was to send a fire from the sky to burn me, or commanded the mountains to crash me, or ordered the seas to drown me, and ordered the earth such that it swallows me: I would not increase except in thanking and praising my Lord – due to what He has favored me with – of a tongue [which I use to worship Him] !!

So, O slave of Allaah; as you have come here – and as you see my state – I have a need from you: as you see I have no capability over myself in benefitting or harm. But I have my son who comes to me at the time of prayers and he helps me in making Wudhoo for my prayers, and when I am hungry he feeds me, and when I thirst he gives me to drink: But I have not seen him for three days now – so help me by looking for him, may Allaah have mercy on you.’

So I said: ‘By Allaah there is no one who can get a better reward from Allaah by going out to help someone who is most worthy of being helped than someone

like you.’

Thus I set out looking for the son, and I had not gone a far distance when in between two sand-dunes I found a boy who had been attacked by a beast of prey and it killed him for meat ! I was in shock, and very overwhelmed in emotion.

And I said to myself, in what way shall I approach this man to explain to him this [while he is that state !]?

And after some time, I remembered the prophet Ayyoob (may peace be on him) [and how he was tried].

So I returned to the man, and entered; gave him salaams, and he replied the salaams and he said: ‘Aren’t you my friend? [I.e. you are the same person who was here right?]’

And I replied: ‘Indeed.’

So he said: ‘What happened to what I asked of you?’

And I replied: ‘Are you more excellent –in front of Allaah- or is the Prophet Ayyoob [May peace be on him]?’

He replied: ‘Of course, the Prophet Ayyoob [may peace be on him] is.’

Then I said: ‘You know what Allaah did with Him, how He tested him through his wealth, his family, and his children?’

He replied: ‘Of course.’

So I said: ‘And how did He find him?’

He replied: ‘Patient, Thankful, and Praising His Lord.’

So I said: ‘And that was until after [his trial was so hard that] his friends and his relatives abandoned him, do you know that?’

He replied: ‘Yes.’

So I said: ‘And that was until after [his trial was so hard that] the passers-by used to look down upon him [Ayyoob, due to the state he was in], do you know that?’

He replied: ‘Yes.’

So I said: ‘And how did his Lord find him?’

He replied: ‘Patient, Thankful, and Praising His Lord. May Allaah have mercy on you; Be concise.’

Thus I said: ‘The boy you sent me to search for, I found him in between two sand-dunes; and had been attacked by a beast of prey and it killed and ate him! So may Allaah bestow on you patience and increase you in reward!’

So he said: ‘All perfect praise is for Allaah who did not create from my off-spring those who would become open sinners such that they would have to be punished by the fire.’

Then he said the istirjaa’ [We are from Allaah, and to Him we shall all return (legislated to be said at times of calamity)], and [suddenly] he gave out some groans, and he then fell dead ! Indeed we are from Allaah, and to Him we shall all return !!

My calamity and despair just became greater. [What shall I do??]

A man like this, if I leave him here he will be eaten by the beasts, and even if I was to stay here; I cannot do anything! I cannot benefit nor harm!

So I covered him, with a cover [blanket] he had, and I sat there on the side of his head; crying. [After some time] While I am still in that state; I notice the approaching of four horse-men, and [when they got to me] they inquired: ‘O servant of Allaah, what is with you? And what is your story [why are you like this]?’ So I narrated to them my encounter. And then they said to me : ‘Un-cover his face, maybe we might recognize him.’

And I did just that; when the man fell down: and kissed the [dead] man’s hands at time, and kissed his forehead at times!!

And they were saying: ‘My may father be ransomed for you; Eyes which were restrained from the prohibitions of Allaah, My may father be ransomed for you; his body endured in worship while people would be sleeping!! ‘

So I said to them: ‘May Allaah have mercy on you, who is this man!?’

They replied: ‘This is Abu Qilaaba al-Jurmiyy, the companion of Ibn ‘Abbaas. He used to have immense love for the Prophet (sallahAllaahu alayhi wasallam).’

Then we washed him, and shrouded him with some clothing that we had, and we prayed over him, and then buried him…

And the men left and I went away; back to my resting-place.

During that night, when I was sleeping; I saw in a dream: that the [same] man was in a garden from the gardens of Paradise, dressed up from the beautiful adornments of paradise, and he was reciting in a tarteel [slow, rhythmic, correct form of recitation] :

“Salâmun ‘Alaikum (peace be upon you) for that you persevered in patience! Excellent indeed is the final home!” [1]

So I said: ‘Aren’t you my companion [whom I encountered today]?’

He replied: ‘Yes. Of course.’

So I said: ‘So how is all this!?’

He said : ‘Indeed Allaah Has kept degrees which cannot be achieved except by patience in the times of difficulty, and being thankful [and humble] during the times of ease – and [while in both these situations] – having fear of Allaah [by observing his commands] in private and in company of others.’

From the Qur’an (in the English Translation of the meaning) Surah Saffat Ayats 82-112)

(82) And lo! of his (Nuh-Noah)’s persuasion verily was Abraham

(83) When he came unto his Lord with a whole heart;

(84) When he said unto his father and his folk: What is it that ye worship?

(85) Is it a falsehood – gods beside Allah – that ye desire?

(86) What then is your opinion of the Lord of the Worlds?

(87) And he glanced a glance at the stars

(88) Then said: Lo! I feel sick!

(89) And they turned their backs and went away from him.

(90) Then turned he to their gods and said: Will ye not eat?

(91) What aileth you that ye speak not?

(92) Then he attacked them, striking with his right hand.

(93) And (his people) came toward him, hastening.

(94) He said: Worship ye that which ye yourselves do carve

(95) When Allah hath created you and what ye make?

(96) They said: Build for him a building and fling him in the red-hotfire.

(97) And they designed a snare for him, but We made them the undermost.

(98) And he said: Lo! I am going unto my Lord Who will guide me.

(99) My Lord! Vouchsafe me of the righteous.

(100) So We gave him tidings of a gentle son.

(101) And when (his son) was old enough to walk with him, (Abraham) said: O my dear son, I have seen in a dream that I must sacrifice thee. So look, what thinkest thou? He said: O my father! Do that which thou art commanded. Allah willing, thou shalt find me of the steadfast.

(102) Then, when they had both surrendered (to Allah), and he had flung him down upon his face,

It has been announced that Eid Al Adha will be Monday, December 8 2008!

What is Eid Al Adha?

This explains it well:

For those who can not see the video:

What is Eid Al-Adha

The Festival of Sacrifice, Eid-al-Adha, immediately follows the Day of Arafat. Although only the pilgrims in Mecca can participate in the Hajj fully, all the other Muslims in the world join with them by celebrating Eid Al-Adha, or “Celebration of Sacrifice.”On the 10th day of Zul-Hijjah, the last month of the Islamic calendar, Muslims around the world celebrate this feast of commitment, obedience and self sacrifice to Allah. This festival is celebrated throughout the Muslim world as a commemoration of Prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice everything for Allah, including the life of his son Ishmael.

Because Allah spared Ishmael, substituting a sheep in his stead, Muslims commemorate this occasion by slaughtering an animal and distributing its meat among family, friends and the needy as a special act of charity for the occasion. Because of this, many poor Muslims are able to enjoy the unusual luxury of eating meat during the four days of the festival.

They wear their nicest clothing and attend Salatul-Eid (Eid Prayer) in the morning. This is followed by a short sermon, after which everyone socializes. Next, people visit each other’s homes and partake in festive meals with special dishes, beverages, and desserts. Children receive gifts and sweets on this happy occasion. In addition, like the pilgrims in Makkah, the Muslims, who can afford to do so, offer domestic animals, usually sheep, as a symbol of Ibrahim’s sacrifice. The meat is distributed for consumption to family, friends, and to the poor and needy.

Ruling on Eid and the Sunnahs of Eid

I would like to know some of the Sunnahs of Eid and the rulings thereon.

Praise be to Allaah.

Allaah has set out several rulings concerning Eid, including the following:

1 – It is mustahabb to recite takbeer during the night of Eid from sunset on the last day of Ramadaan until the imam comes to lead the prayer. The format of the takbeer is as follows:

Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, laa ilaaha ill-Allaah, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, wa Lillaahi’l-hamd (Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, there is no god except Allaah, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, and all praise be to Allaah).

Or you can say Allaahu akbar three times, so you say:

Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, laa ilaaha ill-Allaah, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, Allaahu akbar, wa Lillaahi’l-hamd (Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great, there is no god except Allaah, Allaah is Most Great, Allaah is Most Great , Allaah is Most Great, and all praise be to Allaah).

Both are permissible.

Men should raise their voices reciting this dhikr in the marketplaces, mosques and homes, but women should not raise their voices.

2 – You should eat an odd number of dates before leaving for the Eid prayer, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not set out on the day of Eid until he had eaten an odd number of dates. He should stick to an odd number as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did.

3 – You should wear your best clothes – this is for men. With regard to women, they should not wear beautiful clothes when they go out to the Eid prayer-place, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Let them go out looking decent” i.e., in regular clothes that are not fancy. It is haraam for them to go out wearing perfume and makeup.

4 – Some of the scholars regarded it as mustahabb to do ghusl for the Eid prayer, because it is narrated that some of the salaf did this. Doing ghusl for Eid prayer is mustahabb, just as it is prescribed for Jumu’ah because one is going to meet people. So if one does ghusl, that is good.

5 – The Eid prayer. The Muslims are unanimously agreed that the Eid prayer is prescribed in Islam. Some of them say that it is Sunnah, some say that it is fard kafaayah (a communal obligation) and some say that it is fard ‘ayn (an individual obligation), and that not doing it is a sin. They quoted as evidence the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) commanded even the virgins and women in seclusion, i.e., those who did not ordinarily come out, to attend the Eid prayer place, except that those who were menstruating should keep away from the prayer-place itself, because it is not permissible for a menstruating woman to stay in the mosque; it is permissible for her to pass through but not to stay there.

It seems to me, based on the evidence, that it is fard ‘ayn (an individual obligation) and that every male is obliged to attend the Eid prayer except for those who have an excuse. This was the view favoured by Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him).

In the first rak’ah the imam should recite Sabbih isma rabbika al-A‘ala (Soorat al-A’la 87) and in the second rak’ah he should recite Hal ataaka hadeeth ul-ghaashiyah (al-Ghaashiyah 88). Or he may recite Soorat Qaaf (50) in the first and Soorat al-Qamar (54) in the second. Both options are narrated in saheeh reports from the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him).

6 – If Jumu’ah and Eid fall on the same day, the Eid prayer should be held, as should Jumu’ah prayer, as is indicated by the apparent meaning of the hadeeth of al-Nu’maan ibn Basheer which was narrated by Muslim in his Saheeh. But those who attend the Eid prayer with the imam may attend Jumu’ah if they wish, or they may pray Zuhr.

7 – One of the rulings on Eid prayer is that according to many scholars, if a person comes to the Eid prayer-place before the imam comes, he should sit down and not pray two rak’ahs, because the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) prayed Eid with two rak’ahs, and he did not offer any prayer before or after it.

Some of the scholars are of the view that when a person comes he should not sit down until he has prayed two rak’ahs, because the Eid prayer-place is a mosque, based on the fact that menstruating women are not allowed there, so it comes under the same rulings as a mosque, which indicates that it is a mosque. Based on this, it comes under the general meaning of the words of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him): “When any one of you enters the mosque, let him not sit down until he has prayed two rak’ahs.” With regard to the fact that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not offer any prayer before or after the Eid prayer, that is because when he arrived the prayer started.

Thus it is proven that we should pray Tahiyyat al-Masjid (two rak’ahs to “greet the mosque”) when arriving at the Eid prayer-place, as in the case of all mosques, because if we assume from the hadeeth that there is no Tahiyyat al-Masjid for the Eid mosque, then we should say that there is no Tahiyyat al-Masjid for the Jumu’ah mosque either, because when the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) arrived at the Jumu’ah mosque he would deliver the khutbah, then pray two rak’ahs then leave and pray the regular Sunnahs of Jumu’ah in his house, so he did not offer any prayer before it or after it (in the mosque).

What seems more likely to be correct in my view is that we should pray two rak’ahs in the Eid prayer-place to greet the mosque, but we should not denounce one another with regard to this issue, because it is a matter concerning which the scholars differ. We should not denounce others with regard to matters where the scholars differ, unless there is a clear text. So we should not denounce the one who prays (Tahiyyat al-Masjid) or the one who sits down without praying.

8 – One of the rulings on the day of Eid – Eid al-Fitr – is that Zakaat al-Fitr is due on this day. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) enjoined that it should be paid before the Eid prayer. It is permissible to pay it one or two days before that, because of the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) which was narrated by al-Bukhaari: “They used to give it one or two days before (Eid) al-Fitr.” If it is paid after the Eid prayer, it does not count as Sadaqat al-Fitr, because of the hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas: “Whoever pays it before the prayer, it is Zakaat al-Fitr, and whoever pays it after the prayer, it is ordinary charity.” It is haraam to delay Zakaat al-Fitr until after the Eid prayer. If one delays it with no excuse then it is not acceptable zakaah, but if there is an excuse – such as if a person is traveling and does not have anything to give or anyone to give it to, or he is expecting his family to pay it and they are expecting him to pay it, then in this case he should pay it when it is easy for him to do so, even if that is after the prayer, and there is no sin on him because he has an excuse.

9 – People should greet one another, but that results in haraam actions on the part of many people, such as men entering houses and shaking hands with unveiled women without any mahram being present. Some of these evils are worse than others.

We see some people denouncing those who refuse to shake hands with those who are not their mahrams, but it is they who are the wrongdoers, not he. But he should explain to them and tell them to ask trustworthy scholars to verify his actions and he should tell them not to get angry and insist on following the customs of his forefathers, because they do not make a permissible thing forbidden or a forbidden thing permissible. He should explain to them that if they do that, they will be like those of whom Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And similarly, We sent not a warner before you (O Muhammad) to any town (people) but the luxurious ones among them said: “We found our fathers following a certain way and religion, and we will indeed follow their footsteps”
[al-Zukhruf 43:23]

Some people have the custom of going out to the graveyard on the day of Eid to greet the occupants of the graves, but the occupants of the graves have no need of any greeting or congratulations, because they do not fast or pray qiyaam.

Visiting the graves is not something to be done especially on the day of Eid or Friday or any particular day. It was proven that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) visited the graves at night, as mentioned in the hadeeth of ‘Aa’ishah narrated by Muslim. And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “Visit the graves for they will remind you of the Hereafter.”

Visiting graves is an act of worship, and acts of worship are not acceptable unless they are in accordance with sharee’ah. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not single out the day of Eid for visiting the graves, so we should not do so either.

10 – There is nothing wrong with what men do on the day of Eid of embracing one another.

11 – It is prescribed for the one who goes out to the Eid prayer to go by one route and return by another, following the example of the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). This Sunnah does not apply to other prayers, Jumu’ah or anything else, it only applies to Eid.

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